Welcome to MBAGuru, a name which is now synonymous to 'Personalized Mentoring'. MBAGuru offers world-class comprehensive preparation services for entrance examinations of leading B-Schools in India and abroad. Formed by graduates from leading institutes in India (IIM-A, IIM-C, IIT Delhi) and abroad (The Wharton School), the institute has re-written the rules of coaching industry by continuously innovating and bringing state-of-the-art teaching methodologies within the reach of MBA aspirants.

Body Language

According to Wikipedia, Body language is a form of non-verbal communication, which consists of body posture, gestures, facial expressions, and eye movements. Humans send and interpret such signals subconsciously.

It is said that human communication consists of 93% body language and paralinguistic cues, while only 7% of communication consists of words themselves.

Alarming fact !!! Isn’ it? Body language may provide clues as to the attitude or state of mind of a person. For example, it may indicate  boredom through sitting with legs crossed, foot kicking slightly, head resting in hand, eyes downcast; Impatience through tapping or drumming fingers; Confidence, superiority through sitting with hands clasped behind head ,legs crossed; Insecurity, nervousness through biting nails; Disbelief through looking down, face turned away.

Body Language In GD/PI

Three most important parameters for evaluation in a B school group discussion are Knowledge (that is displayed), Communication- both verbal and Non Verbal and above all is Group Behavior. While all three play an Integral role in the selection procedure, I have tried to touch upon the importance of Body Language here.

As the saying Goes, Action speak louder than words. You might have done intensive research and have the best of the content ready to be delivered in the GD, you may have outstanding qualities to lead the group, you may have spoken relevant and concrete, you may have structured your discussion well with relevant arguments and facts but the whole labor is in unproductive if you don not take heed for the body language.

So watch out for these tips that may prove valuable at the GD/PI stage.

Correct Sitting posture: You should sit straight in a GD/PI. Don’t stoop or slouch or bend forward. At the same time, you should not be absolutely stiff in your position. You should be comfortable in your posture.

  1. Maintain appropriate Eye Contact: Avoid maintaining eye contact with only one or two persons in the group. This signifies that you are alienating the rest of the members. Speaker should address the entire group and Listeners should maintain an eye contact with the speaker to show interest in the discussion. Looking towards ceiling or floor shows lack of confidence. 
  2. Avoid Aggressive Gestures: Pointing fingers generally signify talking in anger and accusing someone with your finger. Use of violent hand movements in such a manner that it enters your next group member’s space is also a sign of losing one’s composure. Gentle hand movements can be used to elucidate one’s point of view.
  3. Avoid signs of distraction: You should not engage your hands in inapt activities such as scratching, pricking, rubbing, playing with pens and key chains, fiddling with rings, grooming hair etc.
  4. Avoid Sitting with crossed arms/legs: When you sit with crossed arms/legs or both, it refers to a closed mindset and a person who is not ready to accept/listen to others’ point of views.
  5. Do not fidget: You should not keep fidgeting or move uncomfortably in your chair. Try to avoid fidgety movement and nervous ticks such as shaking your leg or tapping your fingers against the table rapidly. 
  6. Control your facial expressions: Control your facial expression and avoid showing your anger/disgust/frustration on your face. Also don’t smirk, smile or laugh unnecessarily. Don’t make it too stoic.
  7. Avoid moving your legs:  Moving legs signal impatience. If you keep moving your legs, you will communicate that you want to get rid of the GD/PI process. 
  8. Nodding while listening – nod once in a while to signal that you are listening. But don’t overdo it and peck like Woody Woodpecker.
  9. Maintain a composed tone: Do not rush through your sentences. Speaking slower not only makes you seem more calm and confident, but also makes you feel less stressed.

You can pick a couple of these tips to work on in every GD session that you attend. By 4-5 sessions, they should have transformed into new habits and something you’ll do without even thinking about it. If you don not improve, keep on practising until it sticks. Then take another couple of things you’d like to change and work on them.

I agree that it is difficult to keep all these things in mind and you are not a programmed robot that can switch inherent gestures/habits so easily but the best part is that all of us falter at some gesture or the other. IF not best at least we can be better than our competitors. 

- Pavneet Tandon: An English (Hons.) from the prestigious JMC (DU), Pavneet is an expert English trainer for the CAT and the GMAT and mentors students at MBAGuru, INDIA’s Fastest Growing CAT Coaching Institute across its Delhi centres. Her adaptive style of teaching cuts across backgrounds and learning stages of students and helps them transition to their respective next levels.



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